Nice Shot!

Gun Club Hosts First Sanctioned Shoot

Sherwood, ND - The sound of gunfire filled the air near the Canadian border this weekend.

But the shots were not connected to any crimes.

We go to Sherwood where the local gun club held its first-ever sanctioned shooting event.

The yells of "pull" and "yep" and the periodic pop of shotguns - sure signs I've wandered into a trap shooting contest.

"This is our first ATA shoot here," said Dwight Knutson, Renville County Gun Club President.

It's a first for the Renville County Gun Club - hosting about 25 shooters from around North Dakota - all trying to show off their marksmanship.

"It's the competitive aspect. But it's also something I'm 100% in control of because I'm the only one that can pull the trigger. So it's just striving for that perfection, I guess," said Louis Kuster, a shooter from Stanley.

Louis Kuster came from Stanley to be part of the event - striving for the perfection of hitting 100 clay targets out of 100 shots.

"I've broken a few hundreds but not many - there's people who've broken a lot more," Kuster added.

He says his average is about 95 out of 100. And when you understand how this all works, you can see why getting 100% can be difficult. First, there are the tiny targets - flitting off in seemingly any direction. In fact, that's exactly what's happening.

"The angle is random. You have no idea which direction the target is going. The only thing that's known is the speed of the target - the speed is constant," said Kuster.

So, as a shooter, you have to be ready to react - and with five different shooting stalls, it's all about quick calculation and squeezing the trigger.

"I really enjoy it," said Kuster.

For Club President Dwight Knutson, it's nice to see the club that's barely a gunshot length from the Canadian border, attracting people from a pretty big area.

"Major population areas like Minot, Bismarck, Fargo, Grand Forks, they already have them. It gets to be a bit of travel for folks who might not be that dedicated to the sport," said Knutson.

"The people you meet from all walks of life - they're all good people and you make a lot of friends from all over," said Kuster.

Friends striving for perfection with each pull.

The Renville County Gun Club had been located near Mohall until it was moved to north of Sherwood about five years ago.

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